Salt Lake Acting Company - Steve Yockey

Salt Lake Acting Company announces the cast and creative team for the world premiere of Sleeping Giant by Steve Yockey. The new work, which previously received a reading through SLAC’s New Play Sounding Series in May 2022, is described as follows:

When a firework-filled marriage proposal goes very wrong, the accompanying explosions wake up something very old that’s been sleeping in the nearby lake for thousands of years. What follows are intimate, darkly comic, and sometimes startling vignettes about the lengths people go when they desperately want something to believe in.

Artwork by Courtney Blair

The cast of Sleeping Giant is comprised entirely of SLAC alumni. Lily Hye Soo Dixon (Mercury) plays The Naïf, Tito Livas* (SLACabaret: Down the Rabbit Hole) plays The Messenger, Robert Scott Smith* (Climbing With Tigers) plays The Raconteur, and Cassandra Stokes-Wylie* (Death of a Driver) plays The Convert. Dixon, Livas, and Stokes-Wylie reprise their roles from the New Play Sounding Series reading. 

Sleeping Giant will be co-directed by Emilio Casillas and Shawn Francis Saunders. Associate Directors Casillas and Saunders are joined on the creative/production team by Halee Rasmussen (Scenic Designer), Bett Shouse (Costume Designer), Jessica Greenberg** (Lighting Designer), Cynthia L. Kehr Rees** (Sound Designer), Erik Reichert (Props Designer/Construction Supervisor), Michael Francis (Projection Designer), Latoya Cameron (EDI Dramaturg), and Lucy Urquhart and Anna Blaes (Covid Safety Managers). Jennie Sant* is Production Stage Manager.

Understudies, through the Understudy Program at SLAC, will be announced at a later date. 

Sleeping Giant plays SLAC's Upstairs Theatre from September 21 through October 16. Tickets are currently available exclusively to SLAC Subscribers. Single tickets will go on sale August 29th. 

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*Member of Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States 
**The Lighting and Sound Designers for Sleeping Giant are represented by United Scenic Artists Local USA 829 of the IATSE.

We're delighted to announce our first in–person New Play Sounding Series reading in over two years: Sleeping Giant by Steve Yockey. The free reading will take place in SLAC’s Upstairs Theatre on Monday, May 2nd at 7pm.

Salt Lake Acting Company audiences will remember two previous world premieres authored by Yockey: Blackberry Winter (2015) and Mercury (2017). Since seeing Mercury receive its world premiere at SLAC, Yockey has gone on to become a multi award-nominated (WGA, PGA, Emmy) creator of the popular HBO Max series The Flight Attendant.

Sleeping Giant, a new play which will also receive a full production at SLAC next season, is described by the playwright as follows:

When a firework-filled marriage proposal goes very wrong, the accompanying explosions wake up something very old that’s been sleeping in the nearby lake for thousands of years. What follows are intimate, darkly comic, and sometimes startling vignettes about the lengths people go when they desperately want something to believe in.

“After truly killer experiences with Blackberry Winter and Mercury, SLAC has become a vital and dynamic creative partner,” stated Yockey. “Their artists and their audiences just get it. And Cynthia [Fleming] sets the bar for artistic excellence. I'm thrilled to be back.”

Comprising the cast of the NPSS reading of Sleeping Giant are SLAC alum Alexis Baigue (Stupid F***ing Bird), Lily Hye Soo Dixon (Mercury), Tito Livas (Mercury) and Cassie Stokes-Wylie (Death of a Driver). Kimi Handa Brown, playwright from last year’s NPSS reading of Daddy Issues, will read stage directions. Directing the reading will be Emilio Casillas in his SLAC directorial debut. Casillas is also a co-writer of the upcoming #SLACabaret 2022.

RSVP Here

While admission to the NPSS reading of Sleeping Giant is free, reservations are required. They can be reserved directly via the link above, or by contacting the SLAC Audience Relationship Team at or 801-363-7522.

Please note: all SLAC attendees must show proof of full vaccination and wear a properly-fitting mask. Please visit our COVID-19 safety guide for more information.

Production images from Mercury and Blackberry Winter. All images by David Daniels.